Urrugne · Pyrénées-Atlantiques
The terrace and orangery of Château d’Urtubie
Urtubie, at Urrugne on the Basque frontier, was rebuilt in 1505 and softened in 1745, when its moats were filled; its terrace with its access stair is part of the 2016 listing.
From the source
Château d'Urtubie is a château at Urrugne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France. The recorded building campaigns date from the 14th, 16th and 18th centuries. It is protected as a monument historique at the second level (inscrit). Details are drawn from the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture.
Editorial reading
The lords of Urtubie are mentioned from the early twelfth century; in 1341 Edward III of England allowed them to build a stone castle with walls and moats. The present house dates from 1505, with major works in 1745 that filled the moats and added a block, turrets and windows. The record describes the entrance between two towers, the separate chapel and library, and a set of Flemish tapestries on the story of David said to have come from Paris at the marriage of Louis XIV in 1660. The 2016 listing covers the château in full with its curtain walls, the terrace and its access stair, the chapel building and the inner courtyards.
Recommendation
The filled moats of 1745 are the moment a fortress became a house with a garden; the terrace is where that change is still readable.
Sources
Base Mérimée — immeubles protégés · PA00084538 — Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab) — Ministère de la Culture, base Mérimée
Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Ext%C3%A9rieur%20ch%C3%A2teau.jpg — CC BY-SA 4.0
The château by this garden
Discover the architecture and history of this place at Le Roi du Château.
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